Teledyne CARIS and the UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) have announced a strategic collaboration aimed at enhancing hydrographic data processing and nautical chart production.
This three-year collaboration is expected to benefit the global hydrographic community and improve the services provided by the UKHO, particularly its ADMIRALTY products.
The partnership will focus on advancing existing systems, including CARIS HPD, Bathy DataBASE, and HIPS and SIPS, which have been developed over the past 20 years.
Instead of replacing these systems, the initiative will transition them into a suite of cloud-based services and web applications tailored to the needs of geospatial users.
The collaboration commenced in June, with a visit from the CARIS team to the UKHO headquarters.
This partnership is part of a wider five-year enterprise licence agreement and builds on a long-standing relationship between the two organisations.
UKHO chief data officer Dave Tomaney said: “Our partnership with Teledyne CARIS will enable us to transform the way we process hydrographic data that is critical to producing our navigational products and services – relied on by mariners worldwide.
“By harnessing technology to improve data management and processing, we can continue our work with other hydrographic organisations to support navigational safety and the sustainable use of our oceans – not just benefitting the UKHO, but the wider maritime geospatial community too.”
The initiative aims to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of hydrographic data processing, enabling the UKHO to better support hydrographic offices, mariners, and other users of hydrographic data globally.
Key areas of focus will include automating the ingestion of survey data and chart production, utilising cloud storage, and developing user-friendly interfaces that maintain a comprehensive data interaction experience.
The partnership will involve regular onsite collaboration, demonstrating the advantages of public-private partnerships and showcasing innovation in both Canada and the UK.
Teledyne CARIS vice president Andy Hoggarth said: “This partnership is rooted in the true spirit of collaboration, with government defining relevant use cases and CARIS customising tailored, agile solutions.
“By evolving our tools and workflows, we’re laying the groundwork for UKHO and CARIS to be at the forefront of global hydrography.”